1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a system for and a method of providing an online time period reserving service. More particularly, the present invention relates to a system for and a method of providing an online time period reserving service, which can carry out a communication having a stable quality due to a reservation of a time period provided by an Internet connection dealer.
2. Description of the Related Art
An example of a user registration system of a conventional Internet connection dealer is disclosed in Japanese Laid Open Patent Application (JP-A-Heisei, 9-179905). In this conventional technique, as shown in FIG. 1, a proper access point 6 is selected from an access point table 3 noted in a personal computer 1. Then, a user information is registered in the access point 6. Accordingly, a new user is registered. By the way, in FIG. 1, a symbol 2 denotes a keyboard, a symbol 4 denotes a controller, a symbol 5 denotes a modem, a symbol 7 denotes a telephone line, and a symbol 8 denotes a host computer, respectively.
This registration method is also applied to the Internet connection dealer. So, an icon on a screen of the personal computer 1 can be clicked to conclude a contract with the Internet connection dealer on an online.
Also, as a conventional technique for keeping a quality on the Internet, there is RSVP (Resource ReserVation Protocol) defined on September 1997 by RFC 2205 (Request For Comments 2205). This method is the protocol for reserving a necessary band by requiring a necessary communication band from a transmission destination of a transmission source.
However, the conventional system has the following problems.
The first problem lies in a fact that it is difficult to keep a communication quality desired by a user.
This is because many users try to carry out communications at the same time, as compared with a communication facility of the Internet connection dealer. In order to protect such an event from occurring, there are a method of limiting the number of users and a method of employing a communication system for insuring a communication quality.
For example, the user registration system disclosed in Japanese Laid Open Patent Application (JP-A-Heisei, 9-179905) can provide the stable communication, though all of the users request communications at the same time, if the number of subscribers (users) to the Internet connection dealer is limited to the maximum number that can be allowed by the communication system of the dealer.
However, there is almost no case that all the users request the communications at the same time. Usually, the communications are carried out in only a range less than a power of the communication system. Thus, its efficiency is poor.
On the other hand, as the communication system for insuring the communication quality, there is the RSVP defined by the RFC 2205. However, as the second problem, there is the problem of the necessity of a facility investment cost to insure the communication quality such as the RSVP and the like.
This is because the introduction of the communication system corresponding to the RSVP requires all communication apparatuses on a communication route to introduce the devices corresponding to the RSVP.
By the way, as other conventional technical documents, there are Japanese Laid Open Patent Application (JP-A-Heisei, 11-15754), Japanese Laid Open Patent Application (JP-A-Heisei, 11-272711) and the like.
The technique disclosed in Japanese Laid Open Patent Application (JP-A-Heisei, 11-15754) is intended to reduce the number of connections to a provider in such a way that one user carries out a reservation registration for a plurality of communications, and one trial of a connection to the provider enables the plurality of communications to be executed in a batch manner. On the other hand, the present invention is intended to adjust reservations from a plurality of users, and thereby protect the many users from requesting communication services at a time, and accordingly insure the communication quality for users within a range of reservation receptions. Also, Japanese Laid Open Patent Application (JP-A-Heisei, 11-15754) is configured such that a module for carrying out a reservation process is installed on a side of a client (a communication terminal apparatus). This is because it is enough to adjust only a reservation from one user. On the other hand, in the present invention, the reservation process is installed in a server (a provider side). This is because it is necessary to install on the server side in order to adjust the reservations from the plurality of users. Also, since a typical Web client (actually, a browser) is assumed to be located on the user side, the mechanism (namely, the reservation process) peculiar to the present invention can not be installed in the client.
The technique disclosed in Japanese Laid Open Patent Application (JP-A-Heisei, 11-272711) is intended to avoid the occurrence of an excessive communication time because of a user interaction, an unstable communication and a thinness of a dialup line, by reserving a download of large information and collectively downloading it in a batch manner. On the other hand, the present invention is intended to provide a stable communication with a high quality to a user obtaining a reservation. The user obtaining the reservation can interactively download an information, similarly to a typical net surfing. Also, the technique disclosed in Japanese Laid Open Patent Application (JP-A-Heisei, 11-272711) is configured such that a function of reading out an information carries out the download instead of the user. On the other hand, in the present invention, a contract server carries out a control only as to whether an access of a user is filtered or passed, on the basis of a presence or absence of a reservation, and the download of a file is done by the user itself.
Japanese Laid Open Patent Application (JP-A, 2000-59359) discloses the following Internet connection method. In the Internet connection method having a subscriber terminal connected to an IP network, a WWW server for receiving a connection request to the Internet at the subscriber terminal, a customer information manager for storing an information of the subscriber terminal, and an accounting call meter for controlling the connection to the Internet of the subscriber terminal, the Internet connection method sends the connection request to the Internet from the subscriber terminal, and with regard to the connection request, the WWW server receives the information of the subscriber terminal corresponding to an IP address of the subscriber terminal, from the customer information manager, and the WWW server further reports the allowance or rejection of the connection to the Internet of the subscriber terminal, on the basis of the information of the subscriber terminal, to the accounting call meter.
Japanese Laid Open Patent Application (JP-A-Heisei, 10-31635) discloses the following portable electronic mail terminal. This is the portable electronic mail terminal that has a scheduling function, and sends and receives an electronic mail by using a radio communication, and then sending and receiving the electronic mail in a two-way, and it is further provided with: a radio communicator for sending and receiving the electronic mail; a schedule manager for managing a schedule of a user; a display for displaying a content of an electronic mail received by the radio communicator and a schedule managed by the schedule manager; a mail command decoder for decoding the electronic mail received by the radio communicator, and prompting the user to carry out an operation for invoking the schedule if a schedule invoking command is included as its content, and commanding the schedule manager to display the schedule of a day specified by the electronic mail on the display if the user carries out the operation of the schedule invoking command; and an input device for receiving the operation of the user and then sending the operational content to the mail command decoder and the schedule manager.
Japanese Laid Open Patent Application (JP-A-Heisei, 11-212995) discloses the following method of transmitting an information reservation. The method of transmitting an information reservation includes the steps of: specifying an information to be obtained, in a user terminal, a timing when the information is obtained, and a transmission destination of the obtained information; transmitting a data indicative of the specified information to be obtained, the timing and the transmission destination, through a communication network to a transmission server; and obtaining the information to be obtained, at the specified timing, on the basis of the sent data, in the transmission server, and then transmitting to the specified transmission destination.
Japanese Laid Open Patent Application (JP-A-Heisei, 11-328277) discloses the following reservation reception system. This reservation reception system is provided with: a terminal for inputting and outputting a data with regard to a reservation; a reservation judgment processor that is installed in a destination of a reservation and intended to carry out the processes including a reservation judgment, a transmission/reception and a registration of a data with regard to a reservation in the destination; and a collecting/delivering device for collecting/delivering the data with regard to the reservation between the terminal and the reservation judgment processor.
Japanese Laid Open Patent Application (JP-A-Heisei, 9-83678) discloses the following online advertisement system. In an information processing system that is connected to a network and intended to provide an advertisement of a sponsor through an online, in accordance with an access from a user, this online advertisement system is provided with: an advertisement information memory for storing an advertisement information including an access number of a free dial connected to the sponsor; and a communicator for sending the advertisement information to a user terminal when receiving an access request of the advertisement information from the user terminal through the network.
Japanese Patent No. 2998785 discloses the following user registration system. This is the user registration system for registering in a host computer the information necessary for a user registration at a time of a first setup of an electronic apparatus after a purchase of the electronic apparatus having a communication function, wherein the electronic apparatus has a modem for enabling a communication through a telephone line and an access point table for storing all access points that can be connected to the holt computer through the telephone line, and it also stores therein a program for commanding a built-in controller to execute a predetermined user registration operation at the time of the first setup, wherein when a user enters a user registration information containing at least a name and an address necessary for the user registration at the time of the first setup, the controller searches through the access point table on the basis of the address, and selects one access point, and connect to the host computer through the telephone line via the access point, and then stores the entered user registration information in the host computer through the online, and wherein as the predetermined user registration operation, the controller executes the steps of: judging whether or not the setup of the electronic apparatus is the first setup; prompting the user to enter the user registration information if it is judged as the first setup; searching for the one access point through the access point table on the basis of the entered address; and connecting to the host computer through the telephone line via the searched access point, and then sending the entered user registration information through the online.